I keep things in my life–including my blog–free of controversy. I don’t confront people a lot, and always try to respect others opinions while keeping my own. At the same time, I love a good rant 😀 So skip down to the end for me blowing my top on a not-so-nutty topic.

Soy Yogurt With Milk Chocolate Peanuts

I wanted to eat up this soy yogurt so it would be one less thing to carry back to school with me. Of course, what’s soy yogurt without a milk chocolate topic? Irony is tasty. I love how the peanuts taste a little roasted and salted; that contrast definitely helps bring out the sweetness of chocolate. I tried throwing myself back in to Heroes since it looked like the only new thing on television, but since I haven’t seen any of the 2010 episodes I was a little confused. Claire has daddy drama again? That can’t be healthy.

I decided the night would be perfect for a new nut butter. This was one of the ones I bought from Justin’s online store with my Christmas money. It’s similar to Nutella in concept, but the stats are much better as I’ll go into later.

Pumpkin Oatmeal With Chocolate Hazelnut Butter

Mmmm, yum! It melted so well over the oatmeal. This one’s a keeper. It didn’t taste too chocolatey; it more tasted like hazelnuts sweetened up. But that’s what I hope for in a hazelnut butter. And, unlike Nutella, this is vegan! I hope it reaches store shelves before I go through it(I hear it’s already in Colorado!). I ate this watching the star from NCIS on Leno. That was possibly the least interesting interview I’ve seen; oh Conan, we’ll miss you and your wit! I ended up tuning out early, going to bed, and waking up to a sweet surprise.

Box Of Q.Bel Chocolate

I mentioned yesterday that I won a Facebook contest for reviewing Q.Bel. Well, apparently they have Speedy Gonzalez running deliveries for them because I got my prize at 7:20 am from FedEx. Look at that chocolate! I can’t wait to try out the 2 new flavors. That’s definitely one way to start the day. That excitement aside, I started doing my core and did that through. When I got to the cardio(stairs), I grabbed something with protein and carbs.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Luna Protein Bar

I wish I had time to review this now; I will sometime soon and I’d give it a 7.5/10. But I think I say it all when I ate about 1/3-1/2 and just threw the rest out. And I HATE wasting food. It just tasted OK. But it almost was more like a candy bar and definitely not a whole food. I figured, if I wanted to eat a candy bar at the time I should have a Q.bel and if I wanted peanut butter I should have peanut butter. After I finished all the flights, I made a breakfast to “redeem” chocolate and peanut butter.

Vanilla Greek Yogurt

Oatmeal With Chocolate Peanut Butter

Ok. I’ve made my peace with chocolate and peanut butter now. I assure you, the dollop of peanut butter was big; it just got “nestled” into the oats after I popped it back in the microwave for 15 minutes(doesn’t that sound delicious :-D). For the yogurt, I just mixed full fat and 0% with some vanilla stevia and vanilla powder and it was nice and clean tasting. Once again, Justin’s nut butter made me happy 🙂 That was such a good purchase with my Christmas money.

Not Nutella

I’ll admit it: There was a time I adored Nutella and kept it in my pantry. There was also a time I had a Barney plush and thought about tearing out all my teeth if it meant I’d get a dollar under my pillow. But I’ve grown older, and wiser, and just cannot stand Nutella or its marketing. Have you ever noticed how they call it a “Hazelnut spread”? That’s because, legally, they cannot call it a hazelnut butter. The ingredients and statistics of it are so poor, I’m amazed they can get that far.

What’s more appropriate would be “Chocolate Pate” or even “Palm Oil Spread”. But would you top your oatmeal with something called “Palm Oil Spread”? Probably not. But there it is, higher on the ingredients than hazelnuts. And modified to boot! And the list is rounded out with vanillin, which I just can not stand and am happy to have out of my diet. Is it going to hurt you? Not at all. It’s just the hallmark of a cheap product. Now let’s look at Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut Butter:

That looks 10 times better to me. No, 100x. It’s a legitimate hazelnut butter–not a chocolate spread. The ingredients are straight forward and organic. And the nutritional information reads like a nut butter. I’ll leave you with a good rule for buying a flavored nut butter: If the grams of sugar are more than the fiber and protein, look at it with a skeptical eye; if the grams of sugar are more than the fat, put it down and walk away.

I completely agree with you about your Nutella “rant!” The stats on Nutella are terrifying – pure saturated fat and sugar! Aaaah! *running away* I’m so excited to learn about Justin’s chocolate hazelnut butter, though – my Dad grew up with Nutella as a kid (it’s super popular in Israel, where he’s from), and he loves the taste, but doesn’t eat it anymore because of the total lack of nutrition, so now I’ll be able to surprise him with some healthful chocolate hazelnut butter! YAY! Thank you so much!

oooo awesome. I used to eat Nutella alot but recently in the past years just kinda gave it up. Im with you though. Id rather eat products that are waaay more natural. Plus I try to avoid alot of added sugars too. I havent seen this hazelnut spread yet but it looks awesome. Im gonna have to order some to give it a try! Thanks so much for the awesome review of these products. I hope you have an awesome day!

The first time I ever had Nutella was about 6 months ago…and eh…it was alright. Nothing I would ever crave or feel like I need. But I DO think it is interesting that sugar and palm oil are listed before hazlenuts on the iingredient label! Very interesting!

i too used to be a nutella fiend. in crepes, whatever, i was there. of course along with an ED it fell out of my favor, but i still love that combo of hazelnuts + chocolate. i just can’t get around how much added sugar there is though, so i don’t eat it anymore. i’ve found great nut butter + choc products, mara natha makes one that is great! lol i was expecting some massive controversy, but i guess anything involving chocolate is of utmost importance! SO JEALOUS of your qbels, wow they were fast!

i had my first qbel bar yesterday and def thought about you! it was DELISH!! tasted like it would be so bad for you!
i gota find that justins butter!! never was quite a nutella girl
you gota try the cheese crackers and fage..freaking awesome, promise!

The Nutella. It aint healthfood, that’s for sure! I look at it as one step above like HFCS or Hershey’s chocolate. Not that it’s gonna kill you, but make no mistake, not really “healthy” in the least. However, it tastes good 🙂

About

By day, I attend an ivy New England university. At night, I love to cook and taste. And somewhere in between all of that, I fuel for my passion of distance running. I blog about health tips, recipes, and product reviews. Have any questions? Want your product to be featured on my site? Drop me an email at Evan@FoodMakesFunFuel.com and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.